White Americans are the biggest terror threat, says report

A police line holds back white supremacist during a white power rally in downtown Calgary on Saturday, March 19, 2011. Police kept them apart from another group holding an anti-racist demonstration nearby. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Larry MacDougal

A study conducted by the New America Foundation has revealed that white Americans are the biggest terror threat in the US, killing more people in attacks than Muslims or any other group in the last 14 years.

Post 9/11, out of the 26 attacks on US soil defined as terror by the foundation, 19 attacks were carried out by non-Muslims.

Compared to 26 people killed by jihadists since 9/11, 48 people have been killed by extremists who are not Muslim. These include right-wingers, anti-government organizations and white-supremacist groups.

Included in the count was last week’s Charleston shooting — whose shooter confessed to holding white-supremacist ideology —as the reason behind the massacre.

Attacks such as those in Aurora, Colorado and Newtown, Connecticut, were not included since they did not appear to have been caused by a specific ideology, the standard used by New America Foundation to qualify terrorism.

The New York Times reported that post-9/11 trauma has made jihadi terror attacks more prominent in the media, but that the US law enforcement is well aware of the danger of white extremist groups.

According to a recent survey of 382 US police departments done by researchers at the University of North Carolina and Duke University, 74 per cent listed anti-government violence, while just 39 per cent said “Al Qaeda-inspired” violence.

A general view of USS Mount Whitney of the US Navy at sunrise as it approaches the port during the NATO-led military exercise Trident Juncture, Nov. 3, in Trondheim, Norway. VOA

NATO is developing new high-tech tools, such as the ability to 3-D-print parts for weapons and deliver them by drone, as it scrambles to retain a competitive edge over Russia, China and other would-be battlefield adversaries.

Gen. Andre Lanata, who took over as head of the NATO transformation command in September, told a conference in Berlin that his command demonstrated over 21 “disruptive” projects during military exercises in Norway this month.

He urged startups as well as traditional arms manufacturers to work with the Atlantic alliance to boost innovation, as rapid and easy access to emerging technologies was helping adversaries narrow NATO’s long-standing advantage.

British Prime Minister Theresa May arrives for the NATO summit in Brussels, May 25, 2017.Source-VOA

Lanata’s command hosted its third “innovation challenge” in tandem with the conference this week, where 10 startups and smaller firms presented ideas for defeating swarms of drones on the ground and in the air.

Its CEO, Geoffrey Mormal, said small companies like his often struggled with cumbersome weapons procurement processes.

“It’s a very hot topic, so perhaps it will help to enable quicker decisions,” he told Reuters.

A Massive Ordnance Air Blast (MOAB) weapon is prepared for testing at the Eglin Air Force Armament Center on March 11, 2003. VOA

Lanata said NATO was focused on areas such as artificial intelligence, connectivity, quantum computing, big data and hypervelocity, but also wants to learn from DHL and others how to improve the logistics of moving weapons and troops.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said increasing military spending by NATO members would help tackle some of the challenges, but efforts were also needed to reduce widespread duplication and fragmentation in the European defense sector.

Participants also met behind closed doors with chief executives from 12 of the 15 biggest arms makers in Europe. (VOA)